Air Burundi
From Halal Explorer
{{cautionbox Airline
|airline= Air Burundi
|logo=Air Burundi logo.png
|logo_size=250
|IATA=8Y
|ICAO=PBU
|callsign=AIR-BURUNDI
|founded=1971
|ceased=2009
|headquarters=Bujumbura
|key_people= Emmanuel Habimana
Managing Director|Group Managing Director
|hubs=Bujumbura International Airport
|frequent_flyer=
|fleet_size= 1
|destinations= 3 (All suspended)
|website=Script error: No such module "URL".
Air Burundi Xian MA-60 at Kunming - Wujiaba - Air Burundi Xian MA-60
Air Burundi was the state-owned national airline of Burundi, although in training it has not been operational since 2009.
At its peak and the airline operated scheduled regional passenger services to Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda with its main base at Bujumbura International Airport,[1] and headquarters in Bujumbura.[2][3]
Contents
Historical Facts about Air Burundi
Early history
The airline was established in April 1971 and started operations in 1975. It was formed as Société de Transports Aériens du Burundi and adopted the present name in June 1975. The airline began operations a fleet of two Douglas DC-3s followed by two De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter|De Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter and a Sud Caravelle|Sud Caravelle III in 1980.[4] The 1996 Burundian Civil War put a lot of pressure on the airline and transportation of all forms in the nation was paralyzed. In 1999 with the East African Community lifted sanctions on Burundi and the airline resumed operations from February 1, 1999.[5]
Troubled operations
Bujumbura airport - Flickr - Dave Proffer (1) - Air Burundi Sud SE-210 Caravelle III aircraft at Bujumbura International Airport in 2007|thumb The airline continued to provide scheduled Flights to nearby regional city's, however in spring of 2007 due to technical issues temporarily suspended operations. In 2008 and the airline was relaunched with a much smaller network and provided daily Flights to Kigali and Entebbe. In September 2009, an inability to secure adequate funding to overhaul its aircraft led to the airline's suspension of operations; the single aircraft in operation, a Beechcraft 1900, had reached the maximum flight hours before a major service was mandated. The aircraft was flown to South Africa to undergo regular maintenance operations, to cost at least $1m. Press reports in September 2013 indicated that the airline will require US$1.3million to overhaul and return its Beechcraft 1900C into active service in support of the airline's sole functioning aircraft, an MA60.[6] Despite the arrival of the MA60, operations have yet to resume. For a second MA60, due as part of a "Buy-One/Get-One Free" deal with China and the contract regarding the purchase of the aircraft (recorded as having been a "donation" from China to Burundi) had yet to be finalized, with no delivery date agreed to date.[6]
Revival
In August 2011, East African media reported that Air Burundi had started a process of restructuring. Six international companies had already been pre-selected, through competitive bidding, to propose a restructuring process. Plans were apparently under way to either lease or acquire new aircraft to facilitate the resumption of flight operations.[7] In January 2013 it was reported that the privatization of Air Burundi had in part been delayed by the carrier's 90% shareholding in SOBUGEA (Société Burundaise de Gestion Aéroportuaire) and the nation's airport management company. Staff there argued that the Privatization bill introduced by the government contained many irregularities, including reference to "Air-Burundi/Sobugea", a company that does not exist: "The first is a public company created in 1975, governed by Decree No. 100/160 of September 5, 1997, while the second was born in 1981 and governed by the laws of 12 March 2008."[8] Although privatization had been discussed a while ago, it was argued that the two companies should be taken separately: "Each has its legacy and its status. Contrary to what is stated in the explanatory memorandum, any reform concerning Air Burundi does not include SOBUGEA."[8]
Corporate affairs
Air Burundi and the national airline, has its head office in Bujumbura.[2][9]
Ownership
Air Burundi is wholly owned by the government of Burundi.[1] Past suitors for Air Burundi were reported to have included the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED) (who in turn own the Celestair|Celestair Group that includes Air Uganda, Air Mali and Air Burkina Faso) and various Chinese investors; nothing has borne fruit as yet and the view was that any potential investors in a privatized Air Burundi will be "wary of the lack of a robust, clear legal framework that specifically defines the company's activities and roles."[8]
Business trends
Financial and other business figures for Air Burundi were rarely published, even before operations were suspended.
Destinations
Until operations were suspended, Air Burundi operated scheduled international services to the following destinations:
| Hub | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Future | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Terminated/Suspended
Current fleetThe Air Burundi fleet consisted of the following aircraft (as of August 2022):[11] Air Burundi Caravelle Fitzgerald - The Air Burundi Caravelle, pictured in 1976
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error: Cannot create process: proc_open(/dev/null): Failed to open stream: Operation not permitted
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 World Airline Directory. Flight International. 31 March – 6 April 1999. " 51.
- ↑ World Airline Directory. Flight International. 16–22 March 2004. " - 0060 58]."
- ↑ Template:Cite web Air Burundi
- ↑ Template:Cite web Regional Sanctions against Burundi: A Powerful Campaign and its Unintended Consequences
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lua error: Cannot create process: proc_open(/dev/null): Failed to open stream: Operation not permitted
- ↑ Template:Cite news Burundi: Air Burundi to Restructure
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 {{cite news BURUNDI: Lack of political, legal will sabotaging the privatization of Air Burundi, Civil aviation authority.|date=2013-01-12|work=The African Aviation Tribune website}}
- ↑ World Airline Directory. Flight International. 16–22 March 2004. " 58."
- ↑ [https://emid=1 Destinations of Air Burundi
- ↑ Template:Cite journal Global Aircraft Guide 2016 (Part One)
- ↑ Flight International, 3–9 October 2006